Is it the journey or the glimpse?
It is dangerous when I have a thought, I know.
But I have been contacted to begin preparations for a class reunion next year and it has prompted my mind to meander. I google images from the hometown (Granby, CT) every so often; I look for memories bound up in the pictures. It struck me, though, that I can't find my memories in someone else's pictures, can I?
I especially am drawn to images of this park. Enders was a frequent place I would go to just "be." It is safe to say that I have spent more time alone in Enders than with others. The last time I was back though, I brought my two daughters. In some way, I was hoping they might gain an understanding of their Dad which our suburban life can never reveal. But when we were making our way down to the falls, I was struck with changes my retreat is undergoing. Some would call them improvements but I am not sure about that.
I hope this doesn't come across as hard hearted or callous. Enders is one of the most beautiful places I know. It is a place that I wish could be shared with everyone. But the process of sharing it is taking away its character.
To get to the falls pictured here, it used to be an exciting process. Improvements have made the vistas more available to everyone, including those whom age or minor physical limitations had prevented from experiencing it. The slippery, slick path is now wider, flatter and pea gravel in places. The sapling on the left has been replaced with a railing on the right. It is far easier to get to views.
And so I wonder- is it the journey to a destination that is more important or is it that glimpse of beautiful along the journey? What creates the experience?
Is a 30 year reunion about getting together with old friends that you haven't seen for years and years to have a couple of drinks or learning how life has impacted them over all this time? Has our culture moved us to the point of wanting such instant gratification that we would prefer it if there was an elevator installed to take us to the bottom of the Grand Canyon instead of an all day hike? How close are we to the sci-fi future of plugging in to give us the sensation of a virtual visit to someplace (think IMAX theaters) replacing the stress and strain of making it happen? And will the win by the Democrats this week make it more likely to happen?
I dunno. But the thought made sense in the shower....
posted by Kurt at 9:01 AM
4 Comments:
You were actually being profound until you got to the election reference. Some things just don't translate from the shower to the marketplace.
As for your initial thoughts, the view and the journey are bound together. There are countless other streams and waterfalls around New England that are just as pretty, but what made Enders special was that it was a hidden jewel that was not readily accessible, and yet it was easily reached with just a little effort. The effort required in parking in an uneven dirt patch, then choosing the correct path to get to the part of the falls you wanted to find, and then making your way, pushing aside branches and mosquitoes, holding tight to tree trunks where the path slid for 3 or 4 feet down the side of a steep hill; these are the things that distinquished Enders from Stratton Brook, or the various falls found alongside the roads in the Keene and Brattleboro area.
The journey and the glimpse on spots like these are intimately intertwined. The view is wonderful, but what gives it magic is the journey. And the journey, without the view, would simply be a pleasant hike in the woods, or an ardous trek to be endured in some circumstances such as your Grand Canyon example. Without the vista of the Grand Canyon, would there be all that much joy in an all day march over rough terrain in sweltering heat?
This is a bit cliche, but things just ain't what they used to be. Years ago, my family and I lived in a nice subdivision, surounded by woods, a creek, the whole nine yards. Fifteen years later, I moved into an apartment in the same subdivision, and it was completely different. Most of the woods had been cleared for a city park, and the creek had been re-routed to accomodate the layout of the park. The neighborhood pool had been replaced by a parking lot.
Some of the places we played in as children were no longer there, for one reason or another, and it saddened me that part of my childhood was gone. I still have my memories, though, so I came to grips with it.
The times, they are a-changing..
bruce and wake, both your comments are right on point. wake, sorry about the election comment; it may have needed some of its own explaination. Democrats are often portrayed as the party of the ultimate in "Political Correctness," which in and of itself isn't a bad thing. But when taken to extremes (as their ideas often do), it can produce exactly the opposite of the intended results. So it is with the "improvements" made to a place like Enders. The reality is that there are some things and places that not everyone is going to be able to experience.
Bruce points this out as well - how many of us, as parents, want to give the same exact great things to our kids that we had? It is a shift in thinking when we realize it can't happen.
That desire to give your kids EXACTLY what you experienced is something I see on a regular basis with some parents regarding Youth Group or Sunday School. They try to recreate the things that they lovingly remember, and don't realize that they don't translate into a new context. And even worse, they forget all the accompanying things that they hated, but that are part and parcel of the very experience they are trying to recreate.
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